Nowhere Left To Run
by BoandNora-ItsOneWord
Summary: Hunted by a killer and stripped of everything she holds dear, Nora is forced to seek out help from her ex husband Bo when she has no one else she can trust.
1. Chapter 1

**Chapter One**  
 **(899 Words)**

His words were in her head, taunting her even as she struggled for breath. She could stand in the path of a hurricane and face it down without showing a hint of how scared she really was…but she had never been good at inviting the current of his biting words to challenge her strength…

" _I don't ever want to see you again."_

Maybe he meant those words when he said them, and maybe he still did…but she was living on adrenaline now and he was her last chance at freeing the elephant now sitting on her chest as she ran. She had to stop somewhere.

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She could see the haunting shadow of his silhouette as he padded down the hall of what used to be their home…another concession she had given him when they parted. She just couldn't stand to sleep with his ghost.

She listened for the familiar sound of his footsteps in the dark…and she took a deep breath. She couldn't help but wonder how many other women had been there in his bed…the bed _she_ used to share with him? It was a question that plagued her every single night, even when she tried to push the images away. It was never her business who he dated or slept with…but it still made her angry. It made her weep for the nights when he swore he would never love anyone but her. _Had that been a lie too? Had every single part of their marriage been a lie?_ She used to know that answer…now she was angry for a different reason all together…and she wondered if she knew her ex-husband at all anymore.

++++

Her brand new leather boots were soaked from the storm and she was beginning to feel the water between her toes as she walked. She was weak and tired from the hours it had taken her to make it this far but she had been determined. She might be down and out but she wasn't dead…and she was damn well going to stay that way.

She hadn't even made it to the door frame when suddenly he was right in front of her. Her heart was beating rapidly in her chest and her breathing consisted of sharp, labored panting... And Then she saw the gun. It had always been his instinct when he didn't know who was out there puttering around in the dark. She knew that about him just as he had always known she would die before she would ever admit defeat. Neither of them had changed.

" _Don't shoot_ ," she gasped, her breath still struggling for air.

That was all she said…He was at her side quicker then she had ever seen him run before…catching her just before she hit the ground…her strength finally giving way to collapse. She had already been shot.

" _Who did this to you_ ," he demanded? "Nora, who shot you?"

It hurt to speak but she asked him for only one thing…no hospitals. They would kill her if she went to a hospital. Of that she was sure of.

He looked down at his ex-wife's quivering hands…they were clutching a newspaper article. It was one of Todd Manning's famous headlines.

 _From trusted attorney to faithless songbird._

"They think _you_ did this," he questioned? "Nora, you are _a lot_ of things but you _aren't_ this. How could they even give this any validity…You would never betray a client.. Never."

They _both_ knew he wasn't just speaking about Todd Manning's newspaper. He was speaking about the bar association. It didn't matter if she was innocent...If the panel believed she was guilty than she could lose her job. _Who would she be if she wasn't a lawyer? It had been what had driven her ever since she could remember._

Tears slipped down her face as she reached for his hand…" Bo," she gulped, holding his hand in a death grip. "You've got to help me. You've got to take this bullet out. I'm going to bleed to death if you don't."

He looked at her face then…the strength she was struggling to hold on to quickly fading…and he made a decision. "I don't know the first thing about removing a bullet…but I'm _not_ going to let you die. I've got to get you someplace safe. "

"We _both_ know there's no such place," she said.

He had been afraid of saying it out loud but she was exactly right. The people that Nora had been accused of betraying were deadly…they had obviously already tried to kill her once…what was to stop them from doing it again?

"We'll worry about that later sweetheart," he said. "Right now, I've got to get that bullet out."

She swallowed the pain in her gut when he lifted her off the ground. He handed her his jacket to place on her wound until he got her down to the basement. The last thing he needed was for her to lose any more blood. He was already unsure _enough_ of how he was going to save her life. He _didn't_ need _any_ more complications.


	2. Chapter 2

**Chapter Two**  
 **953 Words**

He didn't have training in medicine but he had spent enough time in combat to know that sterilization was necessary or you risked further injury…he also knew he had to get her in a stable position without moving her any more than necessary. He propped her head up with a pillow to allow blood flow to her brain, and began to boil water to sterilize the knife and tweezers. He kept checking her vitals as he wiped down the area with bleach.

 _Twenty minutes later, he heard her…that blood curdling scream…the one that made every nerve ending in his body tense up._

The first thing that crossed his mind when he heard it was that there was something wrong internally. He had been shot enough times himself to know that internal bleeding was a serious issue and she had lost so much of it already.

"Where does it hurt baby," he asked? He knew it was probably a stupid question but he also knew the first sign of accessing the damage was to see just how bad it was. He was afraid for her now. He had never seen anyone in so much pain.

" _Give me the damn Vodka_ ," she yelled, not bothering to answer the question at hand. Bo knew it was probably because she hurt everywhere. She was being remarkably strong now but he wondered just how long that could last. A moment passed before she urged him to continue.

"You have to do it _now_ Bo…we both know if I lose any more blood, it's all over. "

"This is really going to hurt Red…I'm sorry but I'm not a doctor."

"No, just the man who's going to save my life."

He took a deep breath as he slipped on the gloves and reached for the instruments. He knew he didn't have much of a choice but the thought of holding her life in his hands scared him…he would never want to be a doctor.

"I'm going to count to ten now Nora…When I get to ten, you need to prepare yourself. "

He handed her a tennis ball he had lying around the basement and told her to squeeze it when it hurt. It might keep her mind off what was happening.

"I'm ready," she said.

 _But she wasn't ready…she wasn't ready for so much pain_ …the alcohol only numbed her so much.

"You can do it baby," he said, as he tried to block out the sound of her agonizing screams. If someone had walked in from the streets, they would have assumed someone was having a baby…that's what it sounded like.

It took him nearly two hours to remove the bullet, given that it was lodged deep in her gut. He quickly applied a pressure tourniquet to stop any more bleeding once the bullet was out.

"You're going to need to hold this while I get more supplies," he told her. "Can you do that Nora, or do you need some water? You're looking kind of pale.

"I can do it," she told him. She had given birth to two children and survived…she could definitely survive a little pain from a gunshot wound. It only took him five minutes before he returned with a first aid kit and some purified water. He took out some gauze and poured some water on it to clean the wound. Then he took some antibiotic ointment and plenty of gauze pads and applied them to her injury. When the wound was all cleaned, he removed the pressure tourniquet.

"You're going to have to watch this Nora. If it gets infected, I'm taking you to the emergency room whether you like it or not. You might need a tetanus shot. You could bleed to death. There are all sorts of things that could happen. Are you going to tell me who shot you now?"

"You're not going to like it very much."

"I already don't like it. Somebody left you for dead. "

"Yeah and that somebody was working with my client. How do you _think_ they found out what I knew? Because _you_ told her…"

"Her?"

" _Stop playing dumb Bo. I don't have the energy to explain._ Your current girlfriend is a cold blooded killer and I'm not sure how much longer you have before she turns on you…this isn't a game anymore Bo. Lindsay's in with the big shots now…everything would have been fine if you hadn't ignored my wishes…there was a reason I didn't want anyone to know what I was doing…"

"So this is _my_ fault now?"

"Bo, listen to me…I was shot because private secrets were leaked to the press…and I think Lindsay was the one who did it…to cover her own ass. Now you can choose to take her word over mine once again but if you do that, next time, I might not be so lucky…next time you might be taking our son to my funeral…Are you okay with that? Are you honestly okay gambling with my life that way when you just removed a bullet that she put in me?"

"Do you have any proof of that?"

"Do I need any? I just need one answer…I am putting my life in your hands right now…and if you choose wrong, it could get me killed…so tell me the truth Bo…Please, if you ever loved me, tell me the truth…I need to know if you are going to sell me out once again…this time, you really do have to choose…Look in my eyes and tell me the truth…I know you don't trust me but would I lie about something like this…please, tell me you believe me…tell me I didn't just put my trust in the wrong man once again…


End file.
